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(No Model.)

H. A. PARRISH.

I ELEOTRIG RAILWAY SIGNAL. No. 429,582. j Y PatntedJune 3,1890.

@h S I Witnesses: L w fizz/avian Qwt 91%? M w NrTE- I STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HOMER A. PARRISH, OF JACKSON, ASSIGNOR TO THE PARRISH ELECTRIC TRACK SIGNAL COMPANY, OF DETROIT, MICHIGAN.

ELECTRIC RAILWAY-SIGNAL.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 429,582, datedJ'une 3, 1890.

Application filed February 19, 1890. $e rial No. 340,991. (1% model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HOMER A. PARRISH, a citizen of the United States, residing at Jackson, county of Jackson, State of Michigan, have invented a new and useful Electrical Railway-Signal, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to that class of trainsignals which are operated by the cars when running over the track, and has for its main object a signaling apparatus in which a signaling-instrument is employed in conjunction with one of the rails of the track, which instrument has two or more dissimilarly-constructed circuit-controllers and independent circuits leading from said controllers to an electric signal or signals common to all of the circuits, so as to obviate a failure of the sig nal being given.

Other objects will appear in the'below de-' scribed and claimed novel construction and combination of parts.

This signal may be employed for railroadstation purposes, at street-crossings, and at any point where desirable.

In the drawings forming a part of this specification, Figure 1 isa side elevation with parts in section on line 3 3 in Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is a plan of Fig. 1, parts being broken away. Fig. 3 shows enlarged lettered details from Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is an elevation of broken details, showing changes; and Fig. 5 is an ele vation showing circuits connected to the dissimilar circuit-controllers and to a signal common to said circuits.

Referring to the lettered parts of the drawings, A is a rail of railway-track. At the side of this rail and parallel therewith is the sig naling-instrument, in which a bar B is shown, which is supported by springs D D, the upper surface of said bar being a little above the upper surface of the rail A. Said springs D D rest on a bed-piece C. This bar B may be of any desired length and may be supported by any other style of spring or springs suitable for the purpose.

The broken wires t n illustrate a metallic circuit, which in use extends to the station or any other desired point where the signal is to be given, and there is of course a battery and a signal or signals in said circuit. The

stationis not here shown. The signal is shown at T in Fig. 5. These wires 't' n are provided beneath the bar B with metallic elastic ends 6 6 side by side and separated from each other and made from spring metal. On the under side of the bar B is a metallic projection a, converging toward the base in somewhat the form of a wedge. The metallic ends e e and projection a illustrate the circuit-controllers for this circuit, said controllers in all the circuits being of course the points which are connected ordisconnected in making orbreaking the circuits. When the bar B is borne down by the wheels of the cars, the projection a wedges between the metallic connections e e, thus contacting with them both and making the circuit. lVhile the circuit remains closed the signal of course sounds. The elastic connections e yield to receive the projection a and form a clamping and eifectual engagement therewith. The bar B may be wood with a metallic strip 0 on top, or it may be all' metal by insulating the projection a therefrom, or, so far as the circuit just described is concerned, said bar may be all wood. The metallic connections e e and proj ection o. are protected by a shield consisting of a case P on the base C and surrounding the connections 6 e, and by a case N on the under side of bar 13 and surrounding the projection a, said case N being of a size to slide into the case P in atelescopical manner when the bar B is borne down. After the cars have passed over the bar 13 said bar is raised by the springs.D,which of course breaks the circuit, this being the condition shown in Figs. 1 and 3. This connection insures a positive connection which can never get out of order and never fails, it matters not the condition of the temperature of weather, unless some of the parts should break or wear out.

In Figs. 1 and-2 are shown the wires of an open circuit, one of them X being connected with the metal strip of the bar B, and the other one 1; being connected with the rail A of the track. Thus when the wheel of the train contacts with the rail'and with the plate of the bar B thiscircuit is closed and the signal is given at the same time the circuit 2' n is closed. A groundci reuit may be employed by not attaching the circuit-wire to the rail, the rail in such case being the ground. One of the wires of the circuit may be grounded, as at h, Fig. 4, and provided with a metallic connection f. The bar 15 is provided with a spring (I, in position to come in contact with the connection f when the bar 13 is borne down by the cars, and this makes the circuit. The other Wire 3 of the circuit is connected with said spring (Z.

That is meant by the two circuit-con trollers of dissimilar construction is that While the circuit-controllers (t e and f (Z are of similar construction both of these circuit-controllers are dissimilar with respect to the controller from c to the rail of the track.

While the circuits herein shown are open circuits, I desire, if I so elect, to use closed circuits.

From the foregoing it will be seen that I employ in the same track signaling-instrument two or more circuit-controllers of dissimilar construction, so that if from any cause one controller should fail to operate the others could not fail to operate from the same cause, thus insuring to a certainty that the signal will be given.

Having thus described my invention, What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is-

1. I11 an electric signal, a track signalinginstrument having two or more dissimilarlyconstructed circuit-controllers, one of which comprises the rail of the track and the contact-strip, and independent circuits leading from said controllers to an electric signal or signals common to all of said circuits, substantially as set forth.

2. The combination of a rail of the track, a bar having a metallic surface for the car- 3. The combination of the bar having a metal surface for the car-Wheels to traverse, and adapted to be borne down against a spring resistance, the metallic projection on theunder side of said bar, the circuit-wires having the disconnected metallic ends with which said projection contacts when the bar is borne down, and the circuit-Wires, one of which connects With the rail of the track and the other with the metal strip of the spring-supported bar, substantially as set forth.

4. 111 an electric signal apparatus, the combination of the circuit-Wires having the disconnected-metallic ends, the bar and springsupports therefor, said bar being adapted to be borne down by the cars against a spring resistance, the projection on said bar for engaging the ends of the circuit-Wires, and the shield to protect the metallic connections of the circuit, consisting of the two-part case, one part adapted to telescope over the other when the bar is acted upon by the car-wheels, substantially as set forth.

In testimony of the foregoing I have hereunto subscribed my name in presence of two Witnesses.

HOMER A. PARRISH.

WVitnesses:

J our: T. STEWART, WILLLUI A. GnooM. 

